Chicago Live! rides again, and moves to The Second City's UP theater

While our Chicago Live! team is busy finalizing appearances by the likes of Jonathon Brandmeier, Rick Bayless, Homaru Cantu and J.C. Brooks and the Uptown Sound (Guest details here), I want to tell you about our new home.

The new Chicago Live! Winter Season will kick off Feb. 2 at the just-opened UP Comedy Club at the Piper’s Alley complex in Old Town. It’s a brand-new theater and, for us, a welcome shift into a neighborhood setting – one rich in Chicago history and known for its entertaining residents (meaning the many characters along Wells Street as much as The Second City and Zanies Comedy Club).

For the Chicago Live! crew, the move brings an exciting opportunity to work more closely with our production partners from The Second City, who have assisted with the creative development and provided comedy segments since the start of Chicago Live! in 2010. UP is their newest venue and will be home to several new Second City shows, as well as Chicago Live!.

For our audience, the new theater offers cabaret seating, food and beverage service and a few more perks to make being part of our studio audience comfortable and memorable. Booth One, anyone? The legendary corner seat from the original Pump Room now lives in UP, and it’s bound to take on a new life as the place to be seen in Old Town.

When we first launched Chicago Live! in 2010, someone asked if there would be enough Chicago stories and people to feature on our new, weekly Tribune stage and radio show. (Really.)

I’m happy to report, as we gear up for a new year -- and our sixth season -- that there is never a shortage of fascinating stories in this city. We’ve featured more than 200 guests so far, and are excited about our new lineups.

We're looking forward to Brandmeier, Bayless, Cantu and the rest. Still, some of my favorite guests are the ones you may not have heard of yet -- usually suggested to us by the Tribune’s reporters and editors throughout the year.

This season, we’ll feature a performance from the Albany Park Theater Project, and we’ll talk with author Adam Levin, among many others.

Chicago Live! will stay true to what you’ve told us you love – host Rick Kogan will guide each hour-long show and continue his “Almanac” series, our lineups will remain eclectic, entertaining and engaging, and we’ll cap each show with a reception for audience and guest mingling.